


A Dream so Real

by littlexbluebird



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, F/M, Knight Aqua, Knight in Shining Armor AU, Tavern Boy Terra
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-07-24
Updated: 2015-07-24
Packaged: 2018-04-11 01:30:55
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,746
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4415942
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/littlexbluebird/pseuds/littlexbluebird
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Terra's entire life has been nothing more than working at the Tavern with his father, but his true dream is to make a life for himself out in the world. His dream to be an adventurer starts to ring true when a Mercenary by the name of Aqua agrees to take him under his wing.  However, is Aqua really suitable to teach Terra?</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Dream so Real

**Author's Note:**

> Not sure how long this series is going to be, but its mainly a fluff (maybe smut) mix of things. Written for my bae, the boyfriendo. Eventually Terra and Aqua will do the kissy kissy, also I'm in love with petite Aqua wearing a full set of armor like its nothing hot damn.

The continuous jingle of armor was difficult to ignore, and the young woman fully dressed inside the bundle of metal was even harder to look away from. She wandered into the Tavern with little interest to onlookers, ruffling her messy blue strands of hair when she pulled her helmet off. Shortly after, with one last chorus of scraping metal, she sat down at the bar. Terra, who had been watching the young knight make herself comfortable, idly stood across the room with starstruck eyes. Not because of the blood on her bodice, as most knights often came with gore covered armor, but because the young woman in the armor looked barely older than himself. In fact, she almost looked younger than him, and he couldn't help but grow curious. He also couldn't help but grow jealous. Jealous of her ability to travel, to see daring sights, while he was nothing more than a boy working for his father. A boy saving up enough coin to travel, to see the world in the way she could see it every day.

"Two bowls of hot stew," said the knight, pulling Terra out of his circling thoughts. He watched as his father silently poured fresh soup into two bowls, placing them both before the blue haired woman. Terra fiddled with the scrap of cleaning-cloth in this hands, watching the young woman pull off her gauntlets with little effort. "And if you have any, a few sweet pies," the stranger continued, placing a few gold and rusted coins on the table.

Terra's father eagerly scooped up the pay before barking, "Terra, get the lass some fresh pie. And quit twiddling your thumbs, we have a **tavern** to run."

"Yes, sir!!" The poor boy barked in return, immediately fixing his posture. He watched in complete horror as the young knight turned around to see the boy who was 'twiddling his thumbs'. Of all things he would be known for, it was his hesitation. Their eyes locked for a simple moment, and in that distracted period of time, poor Terra ran into the chair beside him. Landing on his palms on the other side, his face burned in embarrassment. _crap, crap, crap!_ In his desperate attempt to right his wrong, he missed the small giggle the knight gave off. He even missed her small gentle smile as he tried to calmly make his way toward the basement.

Young Terra's throat felt dry, and his hands felt shaky. Of course he had to make a fool of himself! In front of her! With his mood now soured, he grabbed the freshest pie available, calmed his mind of worries, and marched back out onto the main floor. Avoiding all chairs now, as well as his father's strict gaze, he crossed the partially full room of onlookers. While attempting to avoid all eye contact, he instead caught sight of the knight's weapon, which rested beside it's owner as though it too, needed the rest. Then he found himself gazing at the knight herself. Even eating soup made her look intimidating, but at the same time, radiant. She was interesting, she told a story right before his eyes, and she didn't have to say anything.

"Here," Terra said, purposely making his voice sound deeper as though to impress. The young knight only raised a brow and thanked him. Did she catch on, or did she perhaps still think of him as a foolish tavern boy? Terra couldn't stand it, he didn't even get a chance to speak to her and he's already embarrassing himself. With a short cough, Terra leaned against the counter some feet away from her, gazing downward at the wood floor. With a short cough, he mumbled a small, "Did you . . . just get away from a battle?" with his normal, though much more quiet, voice.

At first, the knight didn't respond. Immediately Terra felt foolish for asking, and was going to take his broken pride back to the basement but before he could apologize, she spoke. "I did." Her voice was gentle. Much more gentle than Terra would have expected. "I just finished fighting off bandits. I killed their leader, so the rest should scatter for now."

"The same bandits that have been bothering the town?!" Terra exclaimed before she could take another bite of stew. He leaned closer as he spoke. The knight nodded, a ever-so-polite smile on her lips. She continued to eat as Terra continued to speak. "I can't believe it. We couldn't even drive them out of town. You did that all on your own?" The stranger nodded once again, pushing away the first bowl and starting the second. "That's incredible."

"I'm glad you think so. I'm just happy to help the town. Bandits seem to be a growing problem these days." Something inside Terra's chest fluttered. Not only did she make fighting bandits sound easy, but she did it out of the kindness of her heart. In Terra's excitement, however, he seemed to miss the sadness in her voice during her last comment.

"I'm Terra," the boy said, an obvious eagerness in his tone.

The knight noticed the boy's eagerness, and his eagerness was contagious. Without speaking just yet, set her spoon down. Her hand crossed over her chest, and she made a small bow toward Terra. "Aqua. I'm a mercenary for hire." She sat herself upright again, eyes sparkling in Terra's direction. "But most days I like to adventure out.You never know when life will reward you for your courage." There it was again, Terra's heart skipping a beat at the simple look Aqua had given him. She was still such a beautiful story, waiting for the pages to be read. "Your Tavern is nice. I've never seen one so friendly."

Aqua's polite tone seemed to surprise Terra again, pulling him away erratic thoughts. "Oh," he began, sounding confused about her change of topic. He wanted to talk more about her adventures. "Yeah, I guess so. Father's been running this place since he was my age. He likes to keep everyone in good spirits." There was a pout in the boy's features as he leaned against the counter once more. "I think he expects me to pick it up after him."

"You don't sound very excited," Aqua noted, pushing away the second bowl of soup.

"I'm **_honored_**. He puts so much trust in me, but I don't want to stay here forever." The tavern boy let out a long sigh, using his thumb to pick at a piece of wood sticking up from the counter. "I want to travel. I want to see the world we live in, and be something great. Something powerful. I want to fight bad guys, to fight dragons, and save towns from bandits!" Terra paused, and glanced toward Aqua, " _Like you._ " Then and there he noticed the uncomfortable gaze Aqua had given him. With burning cheeks, he stood up straight again and twiddled his thumb. "It's a foolish thought, Father agrees, but I can't be Tavern boy forever."

"Your dreams are not foolish, Terra," Aqua said quickly, picking idly at the pie before her. Her mood seemed to change in response to Terra's, and it was easily heard in her tone. "What is foolish, is running away when you're not ready. You no longer wish to be here, and that is understandable, but you should not throw it away either. Do you know how to wield a sword? To use a shield accurately? How to set-up camp with the wilderness around you?" Terra shook his head at all three, and once again, he felt like the fool. "You're strong willed, and you have a goodness in your heart that many explorers do not. However, being an adventurer is more than exploring the world and seeing sights. There's dangers out there, and death is perhaps the least of your worries. Everything out there wishes to kill you, but none of them will make it a quick death."

Feeling shamed, Terra looked away. A second later, Aqua spoke again and this time, her tone was brighter. "Not everyone knows how to become a true adventurer, Terra, but there are others willing to teach you if you have the proper coin. Mercenaries will often protect you with their life." With that, Aqua took a bite of pie and looked the other way, waiting.

Terra was still, thinking over her words. Without hesitation, the tavern boy jumped in place, slamming his hands on the table. "Aqua!! You have to teach me. I- I don't have much money, but I can earn more here. Please, I'm begging you to take me under your wing until I can be an adventurer like you." The boy held his head low, not noticing the bright beaming grin on the bluebird's face.

With a gentle touch to his shoulder, she looked the boy in the eyes and nodded. "I'll teach you everything I know, but you must be patient. Use that money to go to the blacksmith, he'll give you a proper weapon. You can pay me back later. Your training starts tonight." After a swift smirk and a nod from Terra, the two gazed at each other. At first, the boy thought he saw a blush on the girl's cheeks, but she turned away before he could investigate more. "I'll meet you at the Inn across town. Tell your father the soup was perfect."

Once she was fully dressed in her armor again, she departed, leaving behind two empty bowls and a half eaten pie. For a moment, Terra thought he was dreaming. Did he just accept to be a mercenary-in-training? Did he just accept a journey to being a proper adventurer? To be someone worthy of mentioning in the bard's tales? As everything hit the boy at once, he gave a sharp cry of excitement, which in return caused his father to scold him. Eventually Terra was sent back to his room to relax until he could properly work again, but how could he relax? A beautiful young knight promised to teach him how to fight. A beautiful young knight wanted to meet him at dark.

_A beautiful young knight._

The thought of Aqua seemed to make his heart flutter again and again. She really was beautiful, and she was full of strength. However, he had to be sure to focus on his training, not his infatuation with this woman. Of course, that was easier said than done. 

 


End file.
